Australians allowed to buy tickets in bln-dollar U.S. lottery

Xinhua, January 13, 2016
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For the first time ever,
Australians will have a chance at winning the record Powerball
lottery in the United States which this week is worth 1.3 billion
U.S. dollars.

Tickets can be bought for as little
as 14 U.S. dollars.

It was announced on Wednesday that
global lottery company, Lottoland, had been awarded a five-year
online sports betting licence by the Northern Territory Racing
Commission which meant Australians were currently able to buy a
ticket into the most lucrative lottery jackpot in the world.

The licencing change means
Australians are among the few nationalities who can buy tickets in
the Powerball lottery outside of the U.S.

The astonishing amount of
prizemoney on offer will land the winner on Forbes magazine's
famous rich list, alongside the likes of Microsoft founder Bill
Gates and Mark Zuckerberg, who invented Facebook.

The U.S. Powerball draw will take
place in Australia on Thursday.

To win, a player must select five
white balls numbered 1 to 69, plus a red Powerball numbered between
1 and 26, with the odds of winning the jackpot being one in 292
million.

According to the New York Times,
the odds of being struck by lightning this year are about one in
1.19 million, making it about 246 times as likely as winning the
Powerball jackpot.

"It's quite incredible now to think
Australian citizens through Lottoland can join in on the race to
win a mega international lottery without having to leave the
comfort of their own lounge room or office," Lottoland spokesman,
Luke Brill, said in The Age newspaper on Wednesday.

Before the licencing changes,
players were required to travel to the country of the lottery's
origin to purchase a ticket. If an Australian does secure the
winning ticket this week, he or she will be subject to the same
taxes as an American citizen. Endit